New Scotland Brewing

All posts tagged New Scotland Brewing

We’re officially a month into fall, although you might not know it with the weather in most of the region over the last couple of weeks, and our breweries seem to have firmly turned the corner from traditional end-of-summer burnout to finding a second (third? seventh?) wind and stomping into the leaf pile with fun new liquids for all of us to enjoy, especially so-called “cooler weather styles.” With all four Atlantic Provinces now requiring patrons of indoor public spaces to be vaccinated, we remind you to make sure your documentation is in order before heading out for a pint and to above all, please have patience with (often understaffed) restaurants and bars as they continue to navigate a bunch of new processes and procedures that they never asked for, but have no choice but to participate in. In HRM especially, as we come to the end of burger week, remember that it’s been extra crazy here and maybe some additional patience (and generous tips!) are in order. And with that, here’s what you need to know about this week’s new beers and upcoming beery events.

Although the news hasn’t been super regular coming out of North Brewing in Dartmouth over the past few months, that doesn’t mean things haven’t been going on! An Insta update this week shows lots of progress on their new Halifax-side-of-the-harbour location in Timberlea, fuelling hopes that folks can be buying beer there before the holidays and making it a destination for a sitdown pint in the new year. Meanwhile, at their primary facility, they’re settling into fall and continuing to put out interesting beers – two weeks ago we told you about the Coco Pony and Beernana releases (which we’ve heard blend quite nicely together) – like this week’s new one, Chai Wala Stout. Partnering with Aman Dosanj of Paisley Notebook and, more appropriate to our purposes, small batch spice blend purveyor Edible Adventures, this one does what it says on the tin, pairing warm and comforting chai spices with a deep and dark malty beverage. Starting on the malt side with healthy doses of oats for mouthfeel, chocolate malt for color and roastiness, and lactose for some residual sweetness, the first dose of chai was added in the kettle during the boil (not unlike making tea), with a second extraction taking place on the cold side. As you might imagine, the result is a “rich, spiced stout, reminiscent of a sweet cup of masala chai.” You can find it in cans to go (and pints to stay!) at North’s Portland Street location and Battery Park, or for online ordering. And if you go to the source, and you find yourself thinking, “I’d like to have some of this spice blend that’s not already in beer,” you can buy pouches of this limited release blend at the brewery.

Truro Brewing Company has released a new Hazy Pale Ale this week, and are taking part in the world-wide Brave Noise Beer collaboration. In May 2021, Brienne Allan of Notch Brewing in Salem, MA, shared her story of descrimination and misogyny while working in the beer industry, and asked other women in beer to share their own. This launched wave after wave of people sharing their experiences, and ignited a flame to call out bad actors in the industry, and make beer safer and more welcoming to all, including women, LGBTQIA, and non-binary individuals. The Women of the Bevolution, Allan (who has since left Notch to pursue other endeavours), and Notch are hosting the collaboration to continue the momentum, and make real changes by encouraging breweries around the world to brew the beer, promote the movement, and donate funds to groups supporting related organizations. TBC’s Brave Noise Beer is a 4.5% ABV Hazy Pale Ale, featuring a base of Pils malt, with Oats to bump up the mouthfeel, with Sabro and Mosaic hops added late in the boil and whirlpool to contribute more aroma and flavour than bitterness. Bottles of Brave Noise are available now on Inglis Street in Truro, where it can also be found on tap for pints. TBC is donating proceeds from this beer to The Lotus Centre, a non-profit resource for women in Truro, offering counselling, programming, clothing, hygiene products, and much more, all free to their clients. While they are the first brewery in the region to take part in collaboration, we hope they are not the last! Interested breweries can sign up at the link above, it’s not too late!

Up in Port Rexton, the eponymously named brewery has a new beer released last weekend to celebrate friends and long time PR tap account, Adelaide Oyster House in St. John’s, who are celebrating their 7th birthday. It’s a Vibe is a mango guava wheat beer, super fruit-forward and decidedly crushable. Containing both mango and guava, of course, it gets an additional citrusy tropical boost from a small dry hop of Galaxy and Azacca hops. Finishing dry and coming in at a very quaffable 4.5% ABV, it’s the kind of beer one might expect could pair very nicely with oysters. Look for it packaged in cans at both of Port Rexton’s locations (HQ and the St. John’s Retail shop), and on tap at PR and Adelaide, of course.

Fully loaded with a new release this week is Antigonish’s Half Cocked Brewing with Braeside Bitter. Named after the once famed Antigonish bowling alley, “Braeside Lanes”, the bowling alley not only lends its name to this Bitter style ale, but the wood from lane 2 was donated to the brewery to create their bar top. It sounds like it’s going to permanently join the lineup at Half Cocked as this classic style is always a crowd-pleaser, whether you’re in England or Antigonish. Using all English ingredients to stay true to style, they just had to tweak their local water a bit to get what they were looking for. Bringing traditional flavours of a biscuit and caramel malt body, you’ll get notes of honey, lemon and tea based on their hop blend. This is available now on tap and for growler fills at the brewery. 

Always keeping us on our toes (and wishing that we could get there and try their beer!) Secret Cove Brewing is releasing Scoff, a 3% table beer.  As always, they keep with Newfoundland and Labrador themes and pride with their releases, staying true to their terroir, values and traditions. Made for gathering and doing things themselves, this beer welcomes all in a true East Coast spirit. This table beer is brewed with a variety of English hops bringing herbal and earthy notes, pairing with Vienna, rye and flaked barley in the grain bill. There is a lot in here for “just a 3% beer” to pair nicely with all your fall Newfoundland traditions of Jiggs dinner, deer, moose and game season. This is available in 473 mL cans from the brewery today and will likely make its way at various locations across the island in the coming weeks.

From the Lake City (Dartmouth), Lake City Cider has a new release in their Vine Series with Strawberry Pinot Grigio Sparkling Cider. In this series, they use their normal base of Nova Scotia apples for cider, but infuse wine elements from different grapes and sometimes fruit additions. In this release, the apples are complemented with Niagara Pinot Grigio grapes and local Nova Scotia strawberries. The result is a light and refreshing sparkling cider pairing well with many different foods. It’s available now in 355 mL cans and is 9%. You can find this at the cidery or online, and they deliver 7 days a week!

Staying in Dartmouth, New Scotland Brewing is embracing the fall weather by releasing Old Buzzard, a dry Irish Stout. This is a traditional dry Irish Stout with a bit of a twist (we’d expect nothing less from these brewers!) in the addition of locally roasted organic coffee and organic cacao nibs to enhance the flavour. Light in the mouth, dark in the glass, with lovely coffee and chocolate sweetness, it’s a lovely ale for the time of year. A special shout-out to Scott, a co-founder of the brewery (Mike is another founder and Head Brewer), who brewed this beer alongside the production team. It’s been awhile since Scott has been in the brewhouse, so definitely give him a shout-out if and when you try this one on tap. This beer is a very sessionable 3.7% and is available starting today (Friday) only on tap at their Downtown D-town brewery. 

Halifax beer drinkers have been spoiled with another great taproom addition, the Gottingen Street location of Tusket Falls Brewing Co. This week sees the release of Predictable Chaos, available in cans and for pints now. This 7.1% beer is being called a Blackberry Cinnamon Sour Crunch (queue the BJCP style writers scratching their heads). The kettle sour features additions of blackberries, cinnamon, vanilla bean and their in-house baked granola, which in our books, also makes this a perfectly acceptable breakfast beer. And for those on the South Shore, their brewery location is also carrying the Chaos.

Over on the Island (Prince Edward Island, that is), Modern Brewer’s Village Green in Cornwall has a brand new IPA to tickle your tastebuds and satisfy your hop cravings. Coastal avoids the great IPA beef of the 2010s by being “not quite East Coast, not quite West Coast, but definitely wet.” Leveraging classic citrussy Cascade, pithy, piney and resinous Chinook, and stone fruity and slightly tropical Amarillo, it’s got a classic aroma and moderate bitterness in a 6.1% ABV package. It’s already on tap for pints and in cans to go at the tap room in Cornwall; and if you decide to head down and try it or grab some to go, maybe give a thought to trying/grabbing some of their super-sessionable, eminently quaffable 3% Dark Mild.

In other Village Green new, they’re looking for part time bartenders. VG’s beertender/assistant brewer/tastemaker Mark Misener is heading to the Big Smoke to work at Bar Volo, and so there are big shoes to be filled! “Celebrating inclusion and diversity in both people and beer”, all are welcome to start or continue their beer career, by reaching out via email. And Misener will be pouring his last beers in Cornwall next Friday, so be sure to pop by for a visit before then to see him off!

What’s on the go this weekend? In HRM, tomorrow is the last day of Halifax Burger Week, so be sure to get out and support your local restaurants, breweries, and Feed Nova Scotia all in one trip! 

Some Moncton news from a brewery that always has updates for our readers, Tire Shack Brewing has a new beer release and a food event on Sunday. First up, the beer! We’ve had a few white stout releases over the last few months and Tire Shack is joining the fray, releasing Lavender-Chocolate White Stout today! At 5%, this is a white stout featuring both a flavour pop and smoothness from a mix of lavender and chocolate additions. Don’t let the appearance fool you, as this isn’t a classically dark stout, but it tastes like it could be! A limited release as it was brewed on their pilot system, it is only available for pints and growlers at the brewery. Come try it out on Sunday when they’ll be hosting Birria Dave’s at 1pm for Mexican street tacos. Last time they hosted this pop-up event, all the tacos sold out in 90 minutes!  

A friendly reminder that Halifax’s Stillwell Freehouse is hosting a tap takeover by Microbrasserie Les Grands Bois tomorrow. More details on the tap list and fun are available in last week’s post, and their IG page. And keep your calendar free for next Saturday, October 30th, as Stillwell on Barrington hosts Willibald Farm Distillery & Brewery from Ayr, Ontario, bringing a full dozen taps of beer, ranging from lagers to sours, stouts to Triple IPAs, with the folks from Willibald in the house to chat all things beer. We hear there will be some special food coming out of the kitchen too, so come both thirsty *and* hungry!

Those who have attended one of the many Craft Draught Showdown events at the Carleton in Halifax over the past few years know that they’re a great way to not only sample a bunch of tasty beers and enjoy some excellent food but to also have some fun in the process. So whether you’ve been and are looking to go again or haven’t and are excited to try it, you should be aware that these events are back, with one of the HRM’s newest breweries, Serpent Brewing out of Spryfield, taking on one of the oldest craft breweries in the city (and the province, and the region, really), Propeller Brewing on Wednesday, October 27th at 7 PM. As always, five food courses from chef Mathias Probst will be paired with a 4oz pour of a beer from each brewery. Patrons will vote for the most successful pairing with each course, with a winner declared at the end of the night. Tickets are $75, which includes tip but not HST ($86.25 all in) and, conveniently, can be ordered online. Seating is limited, as always, so we’d recommend getting your tickets soon if you want to attend this one!

We have a couple of quick hits from Dieppe before we dismiss you for the week. Be sure to visit your fave local good beer bar, restaurant, or brewery this weekend, to help them keep the great stuff pouring!

Up first is Flying Boats Brewing with Evil Lover, an 8% ABV Double IPA from their Test Pilot Series. This one features large hop additions for bittering (82 IBUs), and also during the whirlpool and dry hop to amp up the aromas of citrus, berries and apricots. Cans of Evil Lover are available now at the Dieppe taproom and through their online store. 

We’ll leave you with a new kettle sour from CAVOK Brewing. Long Weekend is a low bitterness and sessionable take on the style, with only 6 IBUs and 4.7% ABV. It’s available now in cans and on tap for pints or growler fills.

Fall is nearly here, so that means a few things are here with certainty: Oktoberfest (!), Pumpkin Ales and rising COVID-19 cases. As we get excited for new releases and events currently going on, we see rising cases and lockdowns in Alberta. Make sure to enjoy what you can safely for yourself, friends and family and remember to check out all of the latest restrictions as part of your never-ending beer journey. Now, onto the fun stuff!

Let’s kick things off with a brewery that hasn’t graced these pages in a while. Digby/Kingston’s Roof Hound Brewing has released Aurora Haze, a 4% ABV session IPA. The beer gets its name from the Aurora aircraft that frequent the CFB Greenwood, near Roof Hound’s Kingston location. This hazy SIPA exclusively features Amarillo hops, which were only added during the dry hopping phase, keeping the bitterness low while pulling out all of those great hop aromas. Bottles and pints are available now at the Kingston location. 

In lovely Port Rexton, Newfoundland, their hometown brewery continues to release new and returning favourite beers, with a pair of collaborations out in the last couple of weeks. Celebrating the BonRexton GranFondo, which took place in Hurricane Larry’s wake last Saturday, they released Headwind Pale Ale. This 4.8% easy drinking ale is the right balance of citrus and stone fruit, with a touch of bitterness too. Still on tap at the brewery, as well as in cans at their St. John’s Retail Shop. And returning in cans is Shoreline, a Salted Stout, featuring salt from the Newfoundland Salt Company, headquartered in nearby Bonavista. Big roast and chocolate notes are complemented by the light minerality and mouthfeel in the 6.5% beer.

And congratulations to co-owner and Head Brewer Alicia MacDonald who will be in the keynote “Women in Beer – Equity, Inclusion and Solidarity” during this weekend’s Canadian Brewing Awards and Conference. Joined by other women in the beer biz, she’ll be joined by other female brewers and those selling beer, to talk on their experiences and what needs to be done to include more in the beer world. Still awaiting details if it can be streamed or watched later, but keep your eyes on the front page for the streaming of the Awards Saturday night…

Speaking of hometown breweries, Tatamagouche Brewing has released the latest in their Intertidal Series this week, their foray into hop-forward beers. Building on the Ekuanot Rye IPA and Idaho Gem, comes Intertidal Tiny. Living up to its name, this is a 3.5% Session IPA, which Brewer Chad Ellis built to impress from the ground up. Starting with Horton Ridge Pale and Vienna as the base malts, Malted Wheat, Malted Oats, and Chit malt rounded out the grains. Walking the tightrope of low alcohol without being too thin, a hotter mash was used to enhance the mouthfeel. Hops-wise, the fun started with mash additions, followed by big whirlpool and then dry hops after brew day. Focusing on Sabro and Mosaic, with a touch of Citra, the tropical, stone fruit, and citrus are strong with this one, complementing the coconut and lime. On tap at the brewery now, with cans dropping in store and on their webstore any minute now.

Propeller Brewing’s Flat White is back in stock as of yesterday. This white stout features many of the aromas and flavours you’d expect in its darker cousin, but in a format that tricks the eye with its golden colour. Prop’s version uses cold-brewed Java Blend coffee and cocoa nibs, that compliment a creamy mouthfeel and medium body, helped out by the use of flaked oats in the malt bill. Expect lots of coffee and chocolate notes in this 5% ABV take on the style, which also features 30 IBUs to keep those sweeter flavours in balance. Cans are available now at Propellor’s three HRM locations and online for delivery and shipping.

Montague PEI’s Copper Bottom continues their barrel-aged sour program with its latest release this week. Like Bramble and Thicket before it, Empire is a mixed ferm beer that was fermented then aged in oak for six, before being transferred to stainless and hit with loads of peaches before packaging and bottle conditioning. Fruit and funk shine through in this 5.1% beer, which is available in bottles at the brewery and their online shop for delivery Island-wide.

Downtown Dartmouth’s New Scotland Brewing is having some friendly in-house competition between 3 members of their brewing staff. “The Battle of the Brewhouse” is a draught-only competition at their taproom and patio on Alderney Drive. First up, from Lucas, is Rye Not?, a Roggenbier spiced with mace and Kashmiri chili. Roggenbier translates exactly to “Rye Beer”, which typically has a malt profile of at least 50% malted Rye, but can vary as brewers see fit. Lucas’ version uses 50% and comes in at 5% ABV with balanced sweetness and forward nuttiness, and a slight slickness also characteristic of the rye malt. The Kashmiri chili builds slowly for some pepper heat.

Next up from Chris is SORRY DAD, an American Pale Ale hopped with Chinook, Simcoe and Mandarina Bavaria. It has lovely aromas of pine and orange, well balanced with some finishing orange flavours and full bodied maltiness; a 5.6% and 41 IBU offering that might just please everyone. 

The last beer in the Battle is from head brewer Mike, with New Wave, a Gose featuring local smoked sea salt and lemon grass additions. A twist on a traditional gose, this one was done using a sour mash technique with added salt and coriander as tradition would go, but also with lemongrass and smoked sea salt from Dartmouth’s own Maritime Salt. A very fragrant beer with citrus note and slight salinity and smoke from the sea salt, it comes in at 5.2%.

We’re not sure exactly how the competition works or what spoils go to the winner, but we’re sure that in order to participate you’ll need to head down and drink some beer and you’ll be sure to find out the details if you do!!

Port-au-Port’s own Secret Cove (that’s not too far from Stephenville, Newfoundland) has a new canned release available today that should be fairly widely available on the eastern side of Newfoundland for more to enjoy. Pee-Wee German is a Berliner Weiße with lime and is sure to be a refreshing and tasty release. A style that we enjoy all year around, this 3.5% offering should be easy-drinking, with slight sourness with a kick of lime. It is available in 473 mL cans immediately from the brewery, but also look for this in St. John’s at Marie’s Mini Mart, along with a few other offerings from Secret Cove. 

We started with the Oktoberfest info last week (or was it the week before?), but it’s coming hot and heavy now folks!

Last week we teased some details about the Oktoberfest festivities at Lwr Sackville’s TAPestry Beer Bar. The fun kicks off this weekend, with a mystery flight of German style beers for Flight School Friday and the beginning of the official two week celebration tomorrow. Circle Saturday the 25th on your calendar for Celebration Day which will feature a wide selection of German style beers from Nova Scotian breweries, a German inspired food menu and free prizes throughout the day. The festivities wrap up with Closing Ceremonies on Saturday, October 3. Check out TAPestry’s social channels (Fb/Ig) for more details.

Hot off the heels of their big US competition wins we mentioned last week, Moncton’s Tire Shack is starting their three weekend long Oktoberfest celebration tomorrow. Euston Park will be popping up a kitchen to serve some authentic German foodstuffs and, of course, there will be a special brew on the go, a Munich Helles they’ve dubbed Helles Yeah! Each weekend, $20 will get you a 1 L stein you can take home after all is said and done, plus your first fill up. Also, the beer has been packaged, so you’ll be able to grab some cans to fill it up again at home!

Montague’s Bogside Brewing is doing an Oktoberfest celebration with a salty, briny twist on Saturday, October 2nd, when they have their OYSToberfest. Two ticketed events are on the slate that day, the first being a Beer School VIP Brewery Tour and Tasting ($25 – tickets here) from 12:30 – 1:30 PM and the second a Shuck ‘U’ demonstration with John Petcoff ($70 – tickets here) from 2:00 – 3:30 PM. From there you can stick around for the Oyster Bar that runs from 4 – 8 PM and two live music events (Keira Loane from 3 – 6 PM and The Broad Cove Boys from 7 – 10 PM). Meanwhile, the brewery is also running a promo on some of their summer products: 20% off purchases of $75 or more on the following products: six-packs of Radler and singles of Sun of a Beach Hopped Sour, Cranberry Wheat, Spirit of Georgetown Gose, Strawberry Sour. Head down to the brewery or place your online order here.

Also on the Island, and last up (for this week, anyway) on the march to Bavarian bliss, is PEI Brewing Company, who are doing their OktoberFEAST on the weekend of October 8th. Starting Friday night at 4 PM with German-inspired food stations along with some not-so-German games (washer toss, cornhole, axe-throwing, and more), there will also be an old school re-release of Gahan Harvest Gold Pale Ale available on draught. On Saturday, things get underway at noon, with all the same games as Friday (except the axe-throwing), plus some game tournaments and other competitions where you can win some PEIBC gift cards. All ticket holders will also receive a 20oz beer stein and their first fill. Tickets are for Friday and Saturday are separate, and for Saturday there’s also the option to tag on an additional ticket for a post-OktoberFEAST album release show by Andrew Waite starting at 8:30 PM.

And here’s your last few quick hits to help inform your weekend beer purchases:

Earlier this summer, the folks at Breton put together a proper French saison they called Île Royale Saison with the folks from Fortress Louisbourg Association to be served at La Taverne Storehouse. With the season winding down, they’ve packaged what was remaining in cans so folks closer to town can enjoy it. We’ll warn you, though, a very small amount is available, so get yourself to the brewery (or put your online order in) in a hurry if you want to try it!

Lastly, if you missed the previous release, there’s a fresh batch of DOA available today at Unfiltered Brewing on North Street. Grab it in cans to go or find it on tap next door at Charm School now.

And if you’re a big fan of Citra hops but are closer to Fredericton than Halifax, Trailway has got you covered for  a citrus hoppy kick, as their Seeing Citra is also back this week. Sit down in the taproom for a pint, have a growler filled, or grab some cans to go!

Dartmouth’s Lake City Cider has a lovely new liquid out that’s thoroughly Nova Scotia and shows what can happen when producers get together and try new things. Lake City married their classic Darkside Dry cider with Caldera Whisky from River John, NS, to produce Apple Jack, an 8.0% ABV concoction that brings notes of oak and spicy rye with plenty of apple presence. Available now in cans from the cidery.

And finishing up today on the Rock, where Landwash has a new “quick little lager” they produced with the KRISPY kveik lager-targeted yeast blend from Escarpment Labs. Coming in at 4.5% ABV and featuring German Saphir hops, look for a bit of spice and even some candied orange; a nice little beer to see out the summer! Look for it at the brewery now and elsewhere (hopefully) soon.

Happy Friday! Hoping you all stayed safe and dry over the past couple of days as Hurricane Ida’s last gasps were felt in the region. With Labour Day coming Monday, many of us will be enjoying the day off, which means your favourite brewery taproom could be on reduced hours as well, to give employees a break. So be sure to check in before making the trek out. The Nova Scotia and PEI Provincial Liquor stores will be closed, fyi, no tweets from ANBL for 4 months…

Let’s kick off this week’s news in Moncton, New Brunswick, where Tire Shack Brewery has brought back their US Open Beer Championship Gold Medal winning Tiki Bar Lime Margarita Gose. At 6.0% ABV, it features massive lime flavour and aroma, with a touch of salinity to keep it refreshing, all on a lovely tart base. Look for that on draught, and should be in cans to go as well. If you time your visit today after work just right, you’ll also be able to try two brand new casks that are hitting the bar top at 5 PM: The first is a Hazelnut Stout, think of Nutella with nice roast coffee accentuating the chocolate notes. The second cask is a Cream Ale, aged on Green Tea, which should lend some lovely floral notes without any tannins. These are both one-offs, so be sure to pop in if you like the sound of them!! 

And on Sunday, Tire Shack is opening their kitchen space to Birria Dave’s, who is a frequent pop-up at Riverfront Market, and will be bringing some great Mexican street food options to John Street from 1 PM. While Birria is right in their name, other options include corn and mushroom, as well as other cool flavours. We can think of a few cool pairings to be done with Dave’s food and Tire Shack’s beer! Remember, Tire Shack’s taproom is Bring Your Own Food the rest of the time, so feel free to bring a meal from one of the many take-out spots nearby, or have something ordered in.

The great folks from the Change is Brewing Collective returned to Boxing Rock this week, to brew up the second version of their Back to Birchtown Stock Ale collaboration, in support of the Black Loyalist Heritage Centre, located in Birchtown, just outside of Shelburne. Look for that to be released in the coming weeks, and in the meantime, those who are interested in learning how to make your own beer should subscribe to Change is Brewing’s YouTube page, where they have posted the first in their Brew 101 series, helping you make some great beer at home. They are joined by Stefan of BrewCulture, a familiar face to those familiar with the NS Beer Scene 🙂 BrewCulture has donated a few kits that Change is Brewing is passing along to those members of the community. Contact them to start your journey into homebrewing!

Dartmouth’s New Scotland Brewing Company is bringing the hops this week with the release of Triple Threat, a 9.9% ABV triple dry-hopped TIPA (that’s Triple IPA!). This one starts off with Citivia hops in the boil and whirlpool. A newer hop on the Atlantic Canada brew scene, Citivia was bred specifically for use in hazy styles of IPA and features prominent stone fruit notes. The triple dry-hop comes from three separate additions of, in order, Talus, Centennial, and finally, Galaxy. This hazy Triple IPA is available today at the Downtown Dartmouth taproom and in cans to-go.

Down in the ‘other Lawrencetown’ Lunn’s Mill is releasing Au Bout Dah, their take on a Belgian Golden Strong Ale. Coming in at 8.0% ABV, expect floral hop notes and from the St. Lucifer yeast, some fruity banana esters This style is known for its scrubbing and effervescent carbonation which also makes it a great companion for richer, fattier foods. Cans of Au Bout Dah are available now at the taproom and through the brewery’s online store.

Jumping up to Newfoundland, Baccalieu Trail Brewing is releasing Undertow, its take on a Strong Dark Mild. Expect some cozy flavours of dark fruit, toffee and molasses, in a style that is made for enjoying as the evenings get colder. If a trip to the brewery in Bay Roberts is not in the cards, you can find cans of Undertow at Marie’s Mini Marts in the greater St. John’s area.   

The Pride of Spryfield, Serpent Brewing, continues their Beer Creation Experience releases with Derailleur Helles. Dreamt up by avid cyclist and local Jon, who was looking for the perfect beer to enjoy after tackling the Sambro Loop on two wheels. This 4.6% German Lager is light and refreshing, with enough character to keep you coming back for more. Available on draught for pints and growlers, and in bottles very shortly. And don’t forget, the Mary Brown’s next door is now open, as Serpent’s taproom is perfect for a BYOF session.

Antigonish’s Candid Brewing Company is sharing a sentiment posed by this blog a few weeks ago – “would someone please tell all of these pumpkin beers that it is still summer?” Their ode to summer not being over is Glory Days, a 4% ale brewers with Pilsner malt from Shoreline Malting and hopped exclusively with Sabro, giving those signature notes of coconut and pineapple. Glory Days is a taproom only release and will be available just in time for their Sunday Celtic session, happening at the taproom from 7:00 to 9:00 PM, with onsite food also available from the Boneyard.

East Duck’s Bannerman Brewing has released a special beer this morning, partnering with Nevaeh’s Angel Foundation, releasing an adult version of Nevaeh’s Lemonade. A lemon and lime sour, with a wheat-heavy base, this 5.0% beer is available now on tap and in cans, and keep your eyes open for news on upcoming events to celebrate Nevaeh’s Lemonade Stand.

Tusket Falls Brewing, way down the South Shore of Nova Scotia in Tusket, of all places, has a brand new beer and some big news to boot this week. First, the beer. The name Creamsicle Sour is pretty self-explanatory, we think, but for those who didn’t have a childhood (or don’t remember it), it’s a sour that gets a distinct orange citrus and slightly tropical vibe from generous dry hopping with Citra and El Dorado hops and a sweet and creamy vanilla presence from lactose and vanilla beans. Sound like a cream-filled orange frozen treat to you? This one is far less likely to drip down your hands, and we wouldn’t advise putting a popsicle stick in it, but by all means enjoy it on a hot day! It’s available at the brewery on tap and in cans to go.

As for the big news, keep your eyes on their Socials (Fb/Ig), as they’re mere hours away from announcing the opening of their North End Halifax Taproom and retail location, at 2220 Gottingen Street. Like, any second now, we figure! With a dozen taps, retail and merch to go, this will give fans of Tusket Falls in HRM somewhere to call home, without needing to make the 2.5 hour drive!

Events continue to slowly spring up around the region; here’s hoping that trend is able to continue throughout September!

Just when you thought you didn’t need another excuse to drink some delicious 2 Crows beers this weekend, the brewery has decided to throw a thank you to all of its thirsty customers with a sale on flats of 24 cans. For this weekend only, flats of Dos Cuervos (their take on a Mexican Lager), Tiny Dancer (hoppy table beer), and Matinee (tiny pale ale) are $50 each. Take advantage by dropping by the taproom on Brunswick Street or ordering online for home delivery. 

Speaking of 2 Crows, a reminder that they will be skipping across the water to St. John’s in a couple of weeks, when they take over the taps at Bar Brewdock in East Duck, St. John’s Sept 17. With 24 taps a-flowin’, including at least 2 one-offs only available that evening, and a great menu to pair, it’s sure to be a great time. As space is limited with COVID and all that, this will be a ticketed event, and those tickets are on sale now! Head to Brewdock to grab your tickets, which include the first pour in your own glass to take home at the end of the evening.

Lunenburg’s Lightship Brewery, with arguably the best view of the iconic South Shore town, is continuing their series of live concerts with a massive long weekend of outdoor shows, including Matt Mays, Jenn Grant, and Tim Baker, so scoop up the remaining tickets or ask to be added to the waitlist… And just announced is the September 24 Ashley MacIsaac show, which is sure to be a crowd pleaser, given his high intensity performances. Open for Ashley is Steve MacIntyre, a songwriter and storyteller from Cape Breton. Grab those tickets here!

Is it just us or are our quick hits never really that quick? Oh well, here’s this week’s lone entry:

Halifax’s Garrison Brewing has brought back their Lucky Punk Sour IPA, and is giving it a wider distribution than ever! This tart, hazy, golden IPA features loads of Amarillo, Mosaic, and Bru-1 hops on a sour base, for a cool melding of tropical and citrus hop character with a zippy finish. Available at Garrison’s Seaport and Oxford retail shops, it is also on the shelves at the NSLC and private stores in town, and in ANBL locations from Saint John to Miramichi!

And we finish up the week with a single brewery job to tell you about, but it’s a juicy one!

Are you an experienced commercial brewer in the Atlantic Region (or willing to relocate here) who’s always wondered what it would be like to frolic, Scrooge McDuck-like, in a vault full of hops? Well you might be in luck. Trailway Brewing, who have been growing consistently since they opened in 2014, are known above all for their wide array of hop bombs, and they’re also looking for a new Lead Brewer. Based on the published job description, the job won’t be limited to brewing hoppy styles though: this position will be in charge of managing the funky and sour side of the house as well! If smashing out hoppy bangers while slowly developing well-cultured beers on the side sounds like your jam, you can indicate your interest by emailing your resume and cover letter to info@trailwaybrewing.com or dropping it off at the tasting room in Fredericton.